Kevin Kastning

Kevin Kastning was born in Kansas, and received his Bachelor of Music from Wichita State University in 1984. While there, he studied composition under Dr. Walter Mays, a Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, and student of John Cage, Krzysztof Penderecki, and Karlheinz Stockhausen. Kevin moved to Boston, Massachusetts in 1985, where he attended Berklee College of Music for two years. During this period, Kevin studied privately under the tutelage of guitar legend Pat Metheny. Kevin has composed over 200 compositions for various solo and chamber group instrumentations. He counts among his influences such composers as Johann Sebastian Bach, Bela Bartok, Elliott Carter, Morton Feldman, Carlo Gesualdo, Johannes Ockeghem, Alfred Schnittke, and the composers of the Second Viennese School. Among his compositions thus far are ten piano sonatas, seven string quartets, and many works for duets, trios, quartets, and quintets. His works have been performed annually since 2001 by the London Chamber Group.

Kevin is a recording artist for Greydisc Records, and has recorded various albums with Siegfried, Sandor Szabo (Hungary), and Carl Clements. Kevin’s albums consistently receive very strong reviews from music magazines worldwide; as well as radio airplay in various countries. “Resonance,” Kevin’s 2007 Greydisc release with guitarist Sandor Szabo was voted as one of the Top 10 Albums of 2007 by The Perfect Sound magazine. In October 2004, Kevin was voted Artist of the Month by the 13th Fret, the world’s largest acoustic guitar forum. In November 2007, Yankee Magazine stated, “Kastning is a pioneer in modern acoustic guitar composition." “Parabola,” Kevin’s 2009 Greydisc release with guitarist Sandor Szabo was voted as one of the Best Albums of 2009 by NPR’s “Pushing the Envelope” radio program. Dominic Miller calls Kevin “An amazing player.” Of the Kastning-Szabo Duo, Mr. Miller stated, “They play something absolutely different than I do and I never heard such music in my life before.” Gondola Magazine (Hungary) stated, “Kevin Kastning is a new figure of the American guitar scene; it is not an exaggeration that he is the most modern guitarist now in the US.” In late 2009, Kevin and duo partner Sandor Szabo completed a successful European concert tour with Dominic Miller, guitarist with Sting. Kevin is an artist endorser for Santa Cruz Guitars, and is the inventor of the DKK extended baritone guitar, the DKK-12 12-string extended baritone guitar, and the double-course alto guitar in A. Kevin is also an artist endorser for Bricasti Designs, G7 Performance Capos, John Pearse Strings, Daniel Roberts Stringworks, Peluso Microphones, and Enhanced Audio, among others. Kevin currently resides in northern Massachusetts.